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TIL that autopilot was first invented in 1912

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d8m6d TIL of a top secret US Cold War project "Iceworm" to build nuclear missile sites under the Greenland ice sheet. Abandoned due to ice instability it was assumed the chemical and radioactive waste would remain under the ice forever. It's now predicted this waste will re-enter the environment in 2100.
ADEy7 TIL of Erwin Kreuz, a German tourist who planned to visit San Francisco but accidentally disembarked early, and then spent days looking for the Golden Gate Bridge and other Bay Area landmarks in Bangor, Maine. Amused and touched, Maine residents turned him into a local celebrity.
8aERZ TIL the Soviet Union held elections seeking the appearance of democracy, but only one candidate appeared on the ballot. In 1949, Ivan Burylov, protested this absurd ritual by writing the word ‘Comedy’ on his secret ballot. He was sentenced to 8 years in prison camps for his 'crime’.
woXL1 TIL that while philanthropy can have a positive effect on the world, private foundations are between an offshore international business and a private trust designed to promote founder's interests and wishes, but also to protect untaxed income to their heirs.
P1aae TIL that in 1867, John A. Winston, a former Governor and Confederate Officer from Alabama, presented his credentials to the United States Senate as Senator-elect from Alabama. However, he was not allowed to take his seat because he refused to take the oath of allegiance to the United States.